Preparation and Use of Silver Alloy Composite Nanomaterial

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure provides a method of preparing a silver alloy composite nanomaterial. The preparation method comprises forming a silver alloy comprising at least one of copper, zinc, magnesium, aluminum and titanium into a composite metal rod; evaporating the silver alloy of the composite metal rod, resulting in a gaseous alloy; rapidly cooling the gaseous alloy so as to condense the silver alloy into a solid state; and collecting the cooled powder so as to obtain the silver alloy composite nanomaterial.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Chinese Patent Application No.201710834160.X, filed on Sep.15, 2017 and entitled “Preparation Methodof Silver Alloy Composite Nanomaterial,” which is incorporated byreference herein in its entirety and for all purposes.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to the field of nanomaterials, and inparticular relates to silver alloy nanomaterials.

BACKGROUND

Silver is widely deemed as a safe and reliable bactericidal material.The bactericidal effect of nano-silver cannot be replicated by otherinorganic materials. However, there are different levels of technicalbarriers in the production of nano-silver, as well as in the promotionand application of nano-silver in various industries.

At present, most nano-silver is produced by chemical methods. However,nano-silver produced by such methods is present in the reactionsolution, and separation of the nano-silver from the liquid in thesolid-liquid solution is difficult. This limits the industrialization ofnano-silver. Moreover, the purity of the product is difficult to ensure.In addition, the waste generated in the production process may pollutethe environment.

Still further, the nano-silver powder extracted from the solution easilyforms agglomerates, which are difficult to disperse again. This becomesa technical barrier to the application of nano-silver in variousindustries.

Generally, the physical preparation method of nano-silver according toknown preparation methods is only suitable for laboratory operation, andneeds to be protected by an inert gas such as argon gas or helium gas.In the absence of the protection from an inert gas, silver can be easilyoxidized to form silver oxide, which undermines its bactericidal effect.Moreover, the particle size is difficult to have a uniform distribution.Only when heated to a temperature of 300° C. can the oxygen element inthe silver oxide be completely removed and the silver reduced to metalsilver. However, the foregoing process may form large particleagglomerates, thereby the bactericidal performance thereof is greatlyreduced.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure describes methods of preparing a nano-powder thatovercomes various challenges, drawbacks, and barriers associated withknown nano-power preparation methods and comprises preparing a material,gasifying the material, condensing the material, and collecting thecondensed material for further treatment and/or use. The presentdisclosure also describes systems and methods of utilizing a nano-powdersuch as a nano-powder prepared according to the methods describedherein.

A method of preparing a silver alloy composite nanomaterial according toone embodiment of the present disclosure comprises: preparing acomposite metal rod by combining silver with one or more of copper,zinc, magnesium, aluminum, and titanium; evaporating a tip of thecomposite metal rod by using the composite metal rod as an anodeconductor of a direct current power supply and forming an electric arcbetween the anode conductor and a cathode, yielding a gaseous alloy; andcooling the gaseous alloy by subjecting the gaseous alloy to a gas, forexample air, flowing at about 0.5 to about 1.5 times the speed of sound,causing the gaseous alloy to condense and yielding a cooled silver alloycomposite nanomaterial.

Aspects of the foregoing method may include at least one of thefollowing: further comprising collecting the cooled silver alloycomposite nanomaterial with a powder collector; wherein silver accountsfor about 40% to about 80% of the composite metal rod by weight; whereinpreparing the composite metal rod further comprises: weaving a silverwire with a metal wire of one or more of copper, zinc, magnesium,aluminum, and titanium to yield a mixed metal wire, and cold rolling themixed metal wire to yield the composite metal rod; wherein at least oneof the silver wire and the metal wire of one or more of copper, zinc,magnesium, aluminum, and titanium has a diameter of about 0.4 to about1.0 mm, and the composite metal rod has a diameter of about 4 to about 6mm; wherein a temperature of the arc formed between the anode conductorand the cathode is at least about 5000° C.; wherein a particle size ofthe cooled silver alloy composite nanomaterial is from about 10 nm toabout 30 nm; wherein the direct current power supply has a voltage ofabout 30 to about 40 V and a current of about 900 to about 1100 A;wherein the air is flowing at about 1 to about 1.2 times the speed ofsound; further comprising applying the cooled silver alloy compositenanomaterial to one of a textile product and a fabric product; furthercomprising coating a hard surface of an article of manufacture in thecooled silver alloy composite nanomaterial; and/or wherein the coatingthe hard surface of the article of manufacture in the cooled silveralloy composite nanomaterial comprises mixing the cooled silver alloycomposite nanomaterial with a bonding agent.

An article of clothing according to another embodiment of the presentdisclosure comprises a fabric permeated with a silver alloy compositenanomaterial.

Aspects of the foregoing article of clothing may include: wherein thesilver alloy composite nanomaterial comprises an alloy of silver and atleast one of copper oxide, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide, aluminum oxide,or titanium oxide; wherein a particle size of particles of the silveralloy composite nanomaterial is from about 10 nm to about 30 nm; and/orwherein silver accounts for about 40% to about 80% by weight of thesilver alloy composite nanomaterial.

An article of manufacture according to another embodiment of the presentdisclosure comprises: at least one surface coated with a silver alloycomposite nanomaterial, wherein the silver alloy composite nanomaterialcomprises an alloy of silver and at least one of copper oxide, zincoxide, magnesium oxide, aluminum oxide, or titanium oxide, and furtherwherein silver accounts for about 40% to about 80% of the by weight ofthe silver alloy composite nanomaterial.

Aspects of the foregoing article of manufacture may include: wherein aparticle size of particles of the silver alloy composite nanomaterial isfrom about 10 nm to about 30 nm; wherein the silver alloy compositenanomaterial is secured to the at least one surface with a bondingagent; and/or wherein the article of manufacture is intended to be wornon a human body.

The phrases “at least one”, “one or more”, and “and/or” are open-endedexpressions that are both conjunctive and disjunctive in operation. Forexample, each of the expressions “at least one of A, B and C”, “at leastone of A, B, or C”, “one or more of A, B, and C”, “one or more of A, B,or C” and “A, B, and/or C” means A alone, B alone, C alone, A and Btogether, A and C together, B and C together, or A, B and C together.When each one of A, B, and C in the above expressions refers to anelement, such as X, Y, and Z, or class of elements, such as X₁-X_(n),Y₁-Y_(m), and Z₁-Z₀, the phrase is intended to refer to a single elementselected from X, Y, and Z, a combination of elements selected from thesame class (e.g., X₁ and X₂) as well as a combination of elementsselected from two or more classes (e.g., Y₁ and Z₀).

The term “a” or “an” entity refers to one or more of that entity. Assuch, the terms “a” (or “an”), “one or more” and “at least one” can beused interchangeably herein. It is also to be noted that the terms“comprising”, “including”, and “having” can be used interchangeably.

It should be understood that every maximum numerical limitation giventhroughout this disclosure is deemed to include each and every lowernumerical limitation as an alternative, as if such lower numericallimitations were expressly written herein. Every minimum numericallimitation given throughout this disclosure is deemed to include eachand every higher numerical limitation as an alternative, as if suchhigher numerical limitations were expressly written herein. Everynumerical range given throughout this disclosure is deemed to includeeach and every narrower numerical range that falls within such broadernumerical range, as if such narrower numerical ranges were all expresslywritten herein.

The preceding is a simplified summary of the disclosure to provide anunderstanding of some aspects of the disclosure. This summary is neitheran extensive nor exhaustive overview of the disclosure and its variousaspects, embodiments, and configurations. It is intended neither toidentify key or critical elements of the disclosure nor to delineate thescope of the disclosure but to present selected concepts of thedisclosure in a simplified form as an introduction to the more detaileddescription presented below. As will be appreciated, other aspects,embodiments, and configurations of the disclosure are possibleutilizing, alone or in combination, one or more of the features setforth above or described in detail below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are incorporated into and form a part of thespecification to illustrate several examples of the present disclosure.The drawings are not to be construed as limiting the disclosure to onlythe illustrated and described examples.

FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a method according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of another method according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a scanning electron micrograph of a first example described inthe present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a transmission electron micrograph of a first exampledescribed in the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a scanning electron micrograph of a second example describedin the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a transmission electron micrograph of a second exampledescribed in the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a scanning electron micrograph of a third example described inthe present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

At present, most nano-silver is produced by chemical methods. However,nano-silver produced by such methods is present in the reactionsolution, and separation of the solid nano-silver from the liquid in thesolid-liquid solution is difficult. This limits the industrialization ofnano-silver. Moreover, the purity of the product is difficult to ensure.In addition, the waste generated in the production process may pollutethe environment.

Still further, the nano-silver powder extracted from the solution easilyforms agglomerates, which are difficult to disperse again. This becomesa technical barrier to the application of nano-silver in variousindustries.

Generally, the physical preparation method of nano-silver according toknown preparation methods is only suitable for laboratory operation, andneeds to be protected by an inert gas such as argon gas or helium gas.In the absence of the protection from an inert gas, silver can be easilyoxidized to form silver oxide, which undermines its bactericidal effect.Moreover, the particle size is difficult to have a uniform distribution.Only when heated to a temperature of 300° C. can the oxygen element inthe silver oxide be completely removed and the silver reduced to metalsilver. However, the foregoing process may form large particleagglomerates, thereby the bactericidal performance thereof is greatlyreduced.

In view of the above technical problems, the present disclosuredescribes methods of preparing a silver alloy composite nanomaterial.The production process is simple and controllable, and the energyconsumption is low, thereby facilitating large scale production. Inaddition, the method is environmentally friendly. Compared with thesimple nano-silver in the prior art, the silver alloy compositenanomaterial of the present disclosure does not easily agglomerate andthus maintains its particle size. Further the bactericidal performanceof the composite nano-powder is more stable and reliable.

Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of embodiments ofthe present disclosure are as follows:

In embodiments of the present disclosure, the nano-material is producedbased on the physical principles of gasification and condensation, andno chemical raw materials such as acid and alkali are needed, and nopollutants such as waste water, waste gas and waste solid are generated.

In embodiments of the present disclosure, through adjusting the ratio ofraw materials in the composition, as well as adjusting and controllingthe operating parameters such as voltage, current, gas flow,temperature, etc., the production process of the present disclosure issimple and controllable, and the energy consumption is low, therebyfacilitating large scale productions. Moreover, the product is clean andthe product quality is guaranteed.

In embodiments of the present disclosure, in the production processwithout inert gas protection, the physical properties of copper, zinc,magnesium, aluminum and/or titanium metal are fully utilized, whicheffectively prevents atomic agglomeration and oxidation of metal silver.The particles of the composite nano-powder are only about 10 nm to about30 nm in size, and the size of the metal silver may be even smaller.Therefore, compared with pure nano-silver, the product of the presentdisclosure does not easily to agglomerate or grow in particle size, andthe bactericidal performance of the composite nano-powder is more stableand reliable.

In embodiments of the present disclosure, the prepared compositenano-powder combines the characteristics of at least one metal oxidesuch as copper oxide, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide, aluminum oxide,titanium dioxide, etc., and is more convenient in the application ofspecific products in the fields of textiles, coatings, ceramics,medicine, metal processing, and so on.

Before any embodiments of the disclosure are explained in detail, it isto be understood that the disclosure is not limited in its applicationto the details of construction and the arrangement of components setforth in the following description or illustrated in the followingdrawings. The disclosure is capable of other embodiments and of beingpracticed or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to beunderstood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for thepurpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The useof “including,” “comprising,” or “having” and variations thereof hereinis meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalentsthereof as well as additional items. Further, the present disclosure mayuse examples to illustrate one or more aspects thereof. Unlessexplicitly stated otherwise, the use or listing of one or more examples(which may be denoted by “for example,” “by way of example,” “e.g.,”“such as,” or similar language) is not intended to and does not limitthe scope of the present disclosure.

Referring first to FIG. 1, a method 100 for preparing a nano-powderaccording to embodiments of the present disclosure comprises preparingmaterial (step 104); gasifying the material (step 108); condensing thematerial (step 112); and collecting the condensed material (step 116).

With respect to preparing the material (step 104), the material may be,for example, a silver alloy in a solid state. Embodiments of the presentdisclosure may utilize a silver alloy comprising one or more of copper,zinc, magnesium, aluminum, or titanium. Preparing the material maycomprise, for example, combining raw materials (e.g., wires of theconstituent metals of the silver alloy) into a composite metal rod. Inthe composite metal rod, silver may account for about 40% to about 80%of the rod by weight or mass. Further, the weight or mass percentage ofcopper, zinc, magnesium, aluminum, or titanium may be from about 20% toabout 60%. In some embodiments, less than about one weight or masspercent of incidental materials can be included in the composite.Preparing the material may further comprise weaving a silver wire with ametal wire of at least one of copper, zinc, magnesium, aluminum, andtitanium into a mixed metal wire, and cold rolling to form the compositemetal rod. The metal wire of the silver, copper, zinc, magnesium,aluminum, and/or titanium may have a diameter of about 0.4 to about 1.0mm, and the composite metal rod may have a diameter of about 4 to about6 mm.

Gasifying the material (step 108) may comprise, for example, heating thecomposite alloy until the composite alloy transitions to a gaseousstate. This may be accomplished, for example, by forming an electric arcwith a cathode using a composite metal rod as an anode conductor of adirect current power source to cause gasification and evaporation of ametal rod tip end of the anode conductor, so as to generate a gaseousmetal atomic group, such that silver atoms are sufficiently mixed withatoms of at least one of copper, zinc, magnesium, aluminum and titaniumatoms to form a gaseous alloy. The temperature of the arc formed by theanode conductor and the cathode may be about 5000° C. or higher. In someembodiments, the temperature of the arc formed by the anode conductorand the cathode may be between about 5000° C. and about 10,000° C. Thedirect current power supply used to form the arc may have a voltage ofabout 30 to about 40 volts, and a current of about 900 to about 1100amps.

Condensing the material (step 112) may comprise, for example, coolingthe gaseous composite alloy until the gaseous composite alloy condensesinto a solid state, in which solid state the gaseous composite alloy maycomprise a nano-powder comprising nanoparticles. Such cooling may beaccomplished, for example, by applying an air flow traveling at about0.5 to about 1.5 times the speed of sound to the gaseous alloy. In someembodiments, the air flow may be directed on the gaseous alloy at thesame time as the metal gasification. Use of such a high speed air flowshortens the transition time period from the gaseous state to the solidstate, and prevents the formation of a core-shell structure of thecomponent materials as a result of the difference in their respectivemelting points. In addition, a quick cooling process can help to reducethe oxidation of silver atoms. On the other hand, during the coolingprocess, copper, zinc, magnesium, aluminum and/or titanium metal atomsassociate with the oxygen atoms in the air more easily than do thesilver atoms, and form the respective metal oxide (e.g., copper oxide,zinc oxide, magnesium oxide, aluminum oxide or titanium dioxide). Thesilver atom, however, returns to solid elemental silver.

Still further, introducing a large amount of cooling air into the systemcauses the hydrogen and oxygen atoms in the air to collide with thegaseous metal atoms of the silver and of the copper, zinc, magnesium,aluminum, and/or titanium, such that the same metal atoms cannotaggregate significantly, thereby returning from the gaseous state to asolid state to form composite particles having a particle size of about10 nm to about 30 nm. This helps to ensure that the metal silver thereinexists in a nanoscale form.

Collecting the condensed material (step 116) may comprise collecting thesolid state nanoparticles, which may then be subjected to furtherprocessing such as heat treating. The finally obtained compositenano-powder is not a simple mixture of nano-silver particles with metaloxide particles formed of copper oxide, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide,aluminum oxide and/or titanium dioxide. Rather, the resulting compositenano-powder is a brand new material in which silver and the metal oxide(whether copper oxide, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide, aluminum oxideand/or titanium dioxide) are tightly bonded at the atomic level, andthese components cannot be separated individually.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a method 200 for preparing a silver compositenano-powder according to embodiments of the present disclosure comprisespreparing a composite metal rod (step 204). The composite metal rod maybe prepared, for example, from a first silver wire and a second wireformed of a metal to be alloyed with the silver. The first and secondwires may be combined in any known manner to achieve a composite metalrod with a desired mass percentage of silver. In some embodiments, forexample, the first and second wires may be woven together into a mixedmetal wire, and then cold rolled to form a composite metal rod.

The method 200 comprises evaporating a portion of the composite metalrod (step 208). The evaporating causes the portion of the compositemetal rod to transition from a solid state into a gaseous state. In someembodiments, the evaporating is accomplished by using the compositemetal rod as an anode conductor. Any known method or operation forevaporating metals may alternatively be used to evaporate a portion ofthe composite metal rod.

The gaseous alloy is condensed into solid particles (step 212). In someembodiments, the gaseous alloy is quickly removed from the hightemperature region of the gasification process and rapidly cooled to orbeyond the point of condensation. The evaporating and condensing stepsmay occur at the same time or in immediate succession, so that newlyevaporated gaseous alloy is continuously being condensed.

The condensed solid particles are collected (step 216). In someembodiments, for example, the gas-solid separation resulting from theevaporating step 208 and the condensing step 212 is passed through apowder collector, so as to obtain a composite nano-powder.

The composite nano-powder is subjected to heat treatment (step 220). Theheat treatment may be selected to prevent the oxidization of silver inthe composite nano-powder. In some embodiments, the heat treatment canbe at a temperature between about 280° C. and about 400° C., in someembodiments about 300° C.

Two examples utilizing the method 200 will now be described. In a firstexample, a composite metal rod was formed of a silver wire having adiameter of about 0.5 mm and a purity of about 99.9%, and a copper wirehaving a diameter of about 0.5 mm and a purity of about 99.9%. Thesilver wire accounted for about 70% of the total mass of the compositemetal rod while the copper wire accounted for about 30% of the totalmass of the composite metal rod. The silver wire and the copper wirewere woven into a mixed metal wire having a diameter of about 8 mm, andthen cold rolled to form a metal rod with a diameter of about 5 mm.

The composite metal rod was then used as an anode conductor andsubjected to a direct current voltage of about 36 volts, a current ofabout 1050 amps, an arc length of about 30 mm, and a temperature ofabout 5000° C. or higher, resulting in gasification of the metal alloyof the composite metal rod.

While the metal gasification was occurring, the gaseous alloy wasremoved from the high temperature region of the gasification process bya flow of air traveling at approximately the speed of sound. Thisresulted in rapid cooling as well as condensation of the metal alloy, soas to form composite particles having a particle size of about 10 nm toabout 30 nm when the metal returned from the gaseous state to a solidstate.

The gas-solid separation was carried through a powder collector, so asto obtain a composite nano-powder of silver copper oxide alloy, whichwas then subjected to a heat treatment at about 300° C. (between about280° C. and about 400° C.). The color of the powder did not change afterthe powder was heated, so the silver content in the powder did notoxidize.

FIGS. 3 and 4 comprise images obtained by a scanning electron microscopeand transmission electron microscope of the resulting silver copperoxide alloy nano-powder obtained as described above. The obtainedparticles are uniform and the agglomeration problem is minor. Thetransmission electron micrograph provided in FIG. 4 shows that theparticle size of the powder is from about 10 nm to about 30 nm. If themetallic silver and other oxides in the powder are separate particles,then the composite nanoparticle of the silver copper oxide alloy willgrow larger when heated at about 300° C. to form hard agglomeration.However, the powder particles shown in the electron micrograph are heattreated and yet do not have such large hard agglomerated particles.

The composite nano-powder of silver copper oxide alloy obtained asdescribed above was subjected to an antibacterial test with textile(knitted cloth), and achieved the following antibacterial rates: about99.99% for Escherichia coli, about 99.99% for Staphylococcus aureus, andabout 99.92% for Candida albicans. By conversion, the bactericidal ratesof the composite nano-powder are about 95.71% for Escherichia coli,about 99.77% for Staphylococcus aureus, and about 97.17% for Candidaalbicans. Not only do these bactericidal rates meet the AAA standard forantibacterial textiles, but also in actual use, the textiles can be usedfor in some embodiments, greater than 0 days and less than about sevendays, in some embodiments about seven days, and in still someembodiments at least about seven days, continuously without change, andremain odorless.

In a second example of using the method 200 to obtain a silver compositenano-powder, a composite metal rod was formed of a silver wire having adiameter of about 0.5 mm and a purity of about 99.9%, and a zinc wirehaving a diameter of about 0.5 mm and a purity of about 99.9%. Thesilver wire accounted for about 80% of the total mass of the compositemetal rod while the zinc wire accounted for about 20% of the total massof the composite metal rod. The silver wire and the zinc wire were woveninto a mixed metal wire having a diameter of about 8 mm, and then coldrolled to a metal rod with a diameter of about 5 mm.

The metal rod of silver and zinc was then used as an anode conductorunder a DC voltage of about 32 volts, a current of about 980 amps, anarc length is about 28 mm, and a temperature of about 5000° C. orhigher, resulting in gasification of the silver-zinc alloy of thecomposite metal rod.

At the same time as the metal gasification, the gaseous alloy wasremoved from the high temperature region by an air flow of about 1.2time the speed of sound for rapid cooling so as to form a compositeparticle of about 10 nm to about 30 nm when the metal returned from thegaseous state to a solid state.

The gas-solid separation was passed through a powder collector, so as toobtain a composite nano-powder of silver zinc oxide alloy. This silverzinc oxide alloy nano-powder was then subjected to a heat treatment atabout 300° C. (between about 280° C. and about 400° C.). The color ofthe powder did not change after the powder was heated, so the silvercontent in the powder did not oxidize.

FIGS. 5 and 6 comprise images obtained by a scanning electron microscopeand transmission electron microscope of the resulting silver zinc oxidealloy nano-powder obtained as described above. As in the first example,the obtained particles are uniform and the agglomeration problem isminor.

The silver zinc oxide alloy obtained in the present example was nextsubjected to antibacterial test as a coating, and achieved the followingantibacterial rates: about 99.99% for Escherichia coli and about 99.99%for Staphylococcus aureus. The silver zinc oxide alloy was coated on theinner liner of a refrigerator, and the refrigerator was put into normaluse for about 6 months. At the conclusion of the 6 months, no bacteriawas detected on the coating, and the inside of the refrigerator wascompletely odorless.

A third example is now described for purposes of comparison with thefirst example. In the third example, substantially pure silver wasevaporated in the same manner as described in the first example.However, in the condensing step, the cooling air flow rate was less thanabout 0.3 times the speed of sound. The obtained mixture of metal silverand silver oxide was then heated to a temperature of about 300° C. toobtain a nano-silver powder. FIG. 7 shows the scanning electronmicrograph of this resulting powder. The particles in FIG. 7 aresignificantly larger than the silver copper oxide alloy particles andthe silver zinc oxide alloy particles in the first and second examples,and are accompanied by large agglomerates.

The mixture of silver metal and silver oxide obtained in thiscomparative example was then used for antibacterial tests with textiles(socks), and demonstrated antibacterial rates of about 88.24% forEscherichia coli, about 98.43% for Staphylococcus aureus, and about96.84% for Candida albicans. The bactericidal rates were: E. coli about0%, Staphylococcus aureus about 63.33%, and Candida albicans about40.00%. Although the nano-powder of this third example met the AAAstandard for antibacterial textiles, the nano-powder did not preventodor generation.

Comparing the first and third examples, the silver alloy compositenanomaterial obtained in the first example had better antibacterialperformance and less agglomeration than the pure nano-silver obtained inthe third example.

The silver alloy nanomaterial obtained using the methods 100 and/or 200may be applied on or to a variety of textiles, fabrics, and surfaceswhere sterility is important and not always easy to maintain, such thata passive (e.g., inorganic) antibacterial/bactericidal substance may beuseful. For example and as described above, silver alloy nanomaterialsmay be applied to textiles and fabrics, including to articles ofclothing made of textiles and fabrics. The use of silver alloynanomaterials may be particularly beneficial on articles of clothingthat may be expected to exposed to sweat or to become odorous, includingsocks, underwear, shoe liners, athletic and/or workout clothing(including shirts, shorts, pants, jackets, coats, headbands, wristbands,sweatbands, hats, jock straps, sports bras, sports uniforms, and thelike) and any other such articles of clothing. Fabrics and textiles usedin bath and bedding products, such as bathroom and other floor mats,towels, linens, sheets, blankets, bed coverings, pillowcases, pillows,mattress pads, mattresses, and the like may also benefit fromapplication of silver alloy nanomaterials thereto. Silver alloynanomaterials may also be beneficially applied to equipment (includingboth fabric/textile portions of such equipment andnon-fabric/non-textile surfaces of such equipment) intended to be wornon the body that may be expected to be exposed to sweat and/or to becomeodorous, including sports equipment (e.g., football pads, hockey pads,helmets, facemasks, shin guards, and the like) and security/protectiveequipment (e.g., police and/or military tactical vests, helmets, riotgear). Further application of silver alloy nanomaterials may be madebeneficially in connection with fabrics, textiles, and equipment in themedical field, including hospital linens, sheets, bed coverings, towels,surgical gauze, bandages, sponges, diapers, chair cushions andcoverings, and other soft medical materials; surfaces and handles ofoperating tables, examination tables, beds, and other surfaces that needto be sterile or would benefit from being sterile. Any fabric, textile,or surface that needs to be sterile or would benefit from being sterile,or that may be expected to become odorous, may benefit from applicationof silver alloy nanomaterials thereto.

Silver alloy nanomaterials may be applied to a textile or fabric in avariety of ways. For example, the textile or fabric may be permeatedwith the silver alloy nanomaterials, or the silver alloy nanomaterialmay be sprayed thereon, whether in a dry or wet solution. The silveralloy nanomaterials may also be mixed with a bonding agent prior toapplication thereof to a textile or fabric. Similarly, silver alloynanomaterials may be mixed with or applied on top of a bonding agentwhen applied to hard surfaces such as refrigerator surfaces, operatingtables, and the like.

A number of variations and modifications of the disclosure can be used.It would be possible to provide for some features of the disclosurewithout providing others.

Ranges have been discussed and used within the forgoing description. Oneskilled in the art would understand that any sub-range within the statedrange would be suitable, as would any number or value within the broadrange, without deviating from the invention. Additionally, where themeaning of the term “about” as used herein would not otherwise beapparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, the term “about” should beinterpreted as meaning within plus or minus five percent of the statedvalue.

Although the present disclosure describes components and functionsimplemented in the aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations withreference to particular standards and protocols, the aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations are not limited to such standards andprotocols. Other similar standards and protocols not mentioned hereinare in existence and are considered to be included in the presentdisclosure. Moreover, the standards and protocols mentioned herein andother similar standards and protocols not mentioned herein areperiodically superseded by faster or more effective equivalents havingessentially the same functions. Such replacement standards and protocolshaving the same functions are considered equivalents included in thepresent disclosure.

The present disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments, and/orconfigurations, includes components, methods, processes, systems and/orapparatus substantially as depicted and described herein, includingvarious aspects, embodiments, configurations embodiments,subcombinations, and/or subsets thereof. Those of skill in the art willunderstand how to make and use the disclosed aspects, embodiments,and/or configurations after understanding the present disclosure. Thepresent disclosure, in various aspects, embodiments, and/orconfigurations, includes providing devices and processes in the absenceof items not depicted and/or described herein or in various aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations hereof, including in the absence ofsuch items as may have been used in previous devices or processes, e.g.,for improving performance, achieving ease and/or reducing cost ofimplementation.

The foregoing discussion has been presented for purposes of illustrationand description. The foregoing is not intended to limit the disclosureto the form or forms disclosed herein. In the foregoing DetailedDescription, for example, various features of the disclosure are groupedtogether in one or more aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations forthe purpose of streamlining the disclosure. The features of the aspects,embodiments, and/or configurations of the disclosure may be combined inalternate aspects, embodiments, and/or configurations other than thosediscussed above. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted asreflecting an intention that the claims require more features than areexpressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claimsreflect, inventive aspects lie in less than all features of a singleforegoing disclosed aspect, embodiment, and/or configuration. Thus, thefollowing claims are hereby incorporated into this Detailed Description,with each claim standing on its own as a separate preferred embodimentof the disclosure.

Moreover, though the description has included description of one or moreaspects, embodiments, and/or configurations and certain variations andmodifications, other variations, combinations, and modifications arewithin the scope of the disclosure, e.g., as may be within the skill andknowledge of those in the art, after understanding the presentdisclosure. It is intended to obtain rights which include alternativeaspects, embodiments, and/or configurations to the extent permitted,including alternate, interchangeable and/or equivalent structures,functions, ranges or steps to those claimed, whether or not suchalternate, interchangeable and/or equivalent structures, functions,ranges or steps are disclosed herein, and without intending to publiclydedicate any patentable subject matter.

Any of the steps, functions, and operations discussed herein can beperformed continuously and automatically.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of preparing a silver alloy compositenanomaterial, comprising: preparing a composite metal rod by combining asilver with one or more of a copper, a zinc, a magnesium, an aluminum,or a titanium; evaporating a tip of the composite metal rod by using thecomposite metal rod as an anode conductor of a direct current powersupply and forming an electric arc between the anode conductor and acathode, yielding a gaseous alloy; and cooling the gaseous alloy bysubjecting the gaseous alloy to air flowing at 0.5 to 1.5 times thespeed of sound, causing the gaseous alloy to condense and yielding acooled silver alloy composite nanomaterial.
 2. The method of claim 1,further comprising collecting the cooled silver alloy compositenanomaterial with a powder collector.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereinthe composite metal rod comprises 40% to 80% of the silver by weight. 4.The method of claim 1, wherein preparing the composite metal rod furthercomprises: weaving a silver wire with a metal wire of one or more ofcopper, zinc, magnesium, aluminum, and titanium to yield a mixed metalwire; and cold rolling the mixed metal wire to yield the composite metalrod.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein at least one of the silver wireand the metal wire of one or more of the copper, the zinc, themagnesium, the aluminum, or the titanium has a diameter of 0.4 to 1.0mm, and the composite metal rod has a diameter of 4 to 6 mm.
 6. Themethod of claim 1, wherein a temperature of the arc formed between theanode conductor and the cathode is at least 5000° C.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, wherein a particle size of the cooled silver alloy compositenanomaterial is from 10 nm to 30 nm.
 8. The method of claim 1, whereinthe direct current power supply has a voltage of 30 to 40 V and acurrent of 900 to 1100 A.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the air isflowing at 1 to 1.2 times the speed of sound.
 10. The method of claim 1,further comprising applying the cooled silver alloy compositenanomaterial to one of a textile product and a fabric product.
 11. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising coating a hard surface of anarticle of manufacture in the cooled silver alloy compositenanomaterial.
 12. The method of claim 1, wherein the coating the hardsurface of the article of manufacture in the cooled silver alloycomposite nanomaterial comprises mixing the cooled silver alloycomposite nanomaterial with a bonding agent.
 13. An article of clothingcomprising a fabric permeated with a silver alloy compositenanomaterial.
 14. The article of clothing of claim 13, wherein thesilver alloy composite nanomaterial comprises an alloy of silver and oneof a copper oxide, a zinc oxide, a magnesium oxide, an aluminum oxide,or a titanium oxide.
 15. The article of clothing of claim 13, wherein aparticle size of particles of the silver alloy composite nanomaterial isfrom 10 nm to 30 nm.
 16. The article of clothing of claim 13, whereinthe silver accounts for 40% to 80% by weight of the silver alloycomposite nanomaterial.
 17. An article of manufacture having at leastone surface coated with a silver alloy composite nanomaterial, whereinthe silver alloy composite nanomaterial comprises an alloy of silver andat least one of a copper oxide, a zinc oxide, a magnesium oxide, analuminum oxide, or a titanium oxide, and further wherein the silvercomprises 40% to 80% of the by weight of the silver alloy compositenanomaterial.
 18. The article of manufacture of claim 17, wherein aparticle size of particles of the silver alloy composite nanomaterial isfrom 10 nm to 30 nm.
 19. The article of manufacture of claim 17, whereinthe silver alloy composite nanomaterial is secured to the at least onesurface with a bonding agent.
 20. The article of manufacture of claim17, wherein the article of manufacture is intended to be worn on a humanbody.